La Jour de Paris
by LoveBug53
Summary: At Ouran, everyone is going to France! And love is truly in the air... But that isn't the only thing! There is a monster in Paris. But Haruhi's fine with it. At least Tamaki is happy since he can finally see his mother again. And what's this about a proposal? Set as a sequal to the anime and manga. Contains lots of Tamaki/Haruhi, Hunny/Reiko, and Kyoya/Renge. Has other hosts/OCs.
1. Chapter 1

**Welcome to my story. **

***NOTE: The story takes place after the events of the manga, except the hosts are still at Ouran.****  
**

***It shall contain the canon couples Tamaki/Haruhi, and Reiko/Hunny. It will also contain some Kyoya/Renge (somehow, I tricked myself into liking this pairing; perhaps I can do the same for you). Later on, there will most likely be some Mori/OC, and then some twins/OCs.**

**Anyways, now that I have this settled: Ouran does not belong to me... Blah, blah, blah, copy right. Blah, blah, blah, I'm only a broke hobo with a laptop, so please don't sue, okay? D:  
**

**I hope you enjoy my story!  
**

* * *

"I see."

For the umpteenth time that day, Chairman Suoh sighed, his form walking behind the desk of his home office. Landing back into the soft cushions of his chair, he turned his eyes towards the ceiling. Running an old, slightly withering hand through the disheveled blond hair sitting atop his head, he pursed his lips, sighing once more.

He'd been doing that a lot lately.

"So..." he spoke, trying to find his words. He stared up into the eyes of the tall, lanky boy standing in front of him. "Tell me. Explain to me, as to why I should let not only _you_, but the _entire _student body go along with this little... endeavor of yours. You know as well as I, how the parents would feel about this; some may even be angered by it. _You're not teaching our children_, they'd say. A whole lot of bologna if you ask me, since Ouran uses the highest level of curriculum even obtainable, but the reason still _stands_ son. Ouran is a private, _educational_ school. And I cannot see how going on this little vacation of yours will further our students education."

Unfazed, the boy was determined to get his way. Letting his hands fall to his sides, he made a tight fist as he tried to stand his ground, a newborn passion entering his voice. "Ah, but there is the problem. In France, there is nothing _but _knowledge. And there's beauty and creativity. A grand history entirely of its own. Love, romance; how could someone not learn from, or at least be touched by this? A-And besides. Isn't a school supposed to influence your emotions to make you a better person? To make you stop and think 'hmm, I wonder...'? Paris is a city, which could do this!"

The boy was near breathless by his last sentence. "So I ask you... how could this trip _not_ be a good experience for everyone, huh?"

The chairman opened his mouth to retaliate, but suddenly decided to pause. Looking up at the boy with a new light in his eyes, he let out a breathy laugh, as a thin, ghost of a smile graced his lips. "Oh, I see how this is. Well, those are some _quite_ noble reasoning's -and I'm sure you mean all of them truthfully- but I know you, Tamaki. Too well. Now, tell me son. Tell me the _real_ reason, as to why you want to go."

Tamaki faltered, a spot of crimson entering his cheeks. Sputtering, he finally told his true reasons behind his sudden need to travel across the world. "W-Well, w-what I'd like to do is see mother again. It's been so long, since I've last seen her."

His father laughed. "And this decision has absolutely _nothing_ to do with a certain naive brunette who's seemed to capture your heart?"

"H-Haruhi?!" Tamaki choked, bringing a hand to his throat. Caught off guard by his father's sudden mention of her, all he could do was quiver in his spot, his knees shaking against one another. "Father, w-what are you talking about?"

Good-naturedly, but at his expense, Tamaki's words only caused his father to laugh further. "You know what I mean, you stupid boy. You said it yourself: _'love, romance'_."

Tamaki was beginning to take his father's words as him bullying him. "Ah, the good ol' days; so sweet and mostly innocent. So... when is the engagement, eh?"

Tamaki almost had a heart attack.

"W-WHAT?!"

The chairman blinked, holding up his hands in surrender. "What? You're young, so what. As was I when I met your mother. And you're in love. At least now you don't have that busted, old clam of a grandmother standing in the way of your happiness-"

"I heard that."

"GAH!" Both men jumped. Weirdly enough, Tamaki was the first to pull himself together and greet his loved kin.

"O-Oh. Bonjour, grand'mama. How are you this afternoon?"

His grandmother sighed, raising a hand to her forehead. A pained expression crossed her greying features. "I'm terrible, that's how I am. Try again, and ask me the same question in an hour, maybe I'll feel better."

From the side, stiffening, the chairman sat straighter in his seat. To this day, he still had troubles communicating with his mother. "Hello, mother... You look beautiful today. Is that a new kimono?"

She sniffed at the air. Steeling her gaze away from him, she said. "No, I just haven't worn it in a while." Dark eyes landing on her grandson, she allowed herself to soften the slightest bit when she spoke to him. "Hmm, Tamaki?"

He sprung up to attention. "Yes, grand'mama?"

She reached up for a second time to lightly place her fingers on her temple. Then, she let out another long, and tired sigh, staring over at him with her coal-like eyes. "I have the biggest ache in my forehead. When you're done here could you come by and play me a song on the piano? It would be very much appreciated if you would."

"Yes, grand'mama."

A faint smile came to her as she nodded to him. "Thank you, Tamaki."

Turning to walk out of the room, she stopped mid-step to place both hands in the sleeves of her kimono. Glancing over her shoulder, she sent a look towards her son. "You are so kind to this old woman. Unlike some people we know..."

"Now, just you wait-"

Tamaki quickly threw a hand in front of his father, shaking his head at him, and begged with his eyes for him to stop. He simply hated it whenever he saw the members of his family fight. He held the same sentiments toward the Host Club.

Slowly, his father relented, swallowing down the hate in his throat, before gradually easing his body back down into the soft, dark brown cushions of his office chair.

As this occurred, Tamaki's grandmother carefully stepped out of the room, her posture erect with the grace of a rich woman, and her words leaving behind a thick, tense atmosphere to consume the two males who stood there, left to stand in her dust. Blinking, Tamaki turned to stare down at his father, taking in the damage which had just been done. It was a long, drawn-out moment of silence, before his father finally sighed, his anger subsiding, and he allowed himself a single, silent bang against the desk with the bottom of his palm.

At this moment, Tamaki took a second to watch his father and finally see him as he was; a man. His father was aged, and broken, torn between the many duties which had been placed upon him by the family; his grandmother was old, and coarse, stuck in a constant limbo with her own flesh and blood, all because of the never-ending stubbornness of her pride.

The thought of that, well, it almost made him feel, as if he could cry.

"That vile woman. Speaking to me as if I do _nothing_ for her. As if I never _sacrificed_ anything for her."

A sudden wetness formed behind his eyes, and Tamaki felt the strong urge to run away. But for once, he didn't.

Beside him, his father continued to rant.

"Ungrateful, old bat. She should be so happy that I even stayed with her. I hope she knows that if I hadn't stayed behind, then there wouldn't have even been this place -this home of ours- the place of which she currently dwells. That she would be nothing."

Tamaki grit his teeth.

"That she would have nothing."

His blood began to boil.

"And that she would be alone. God, that woman should learn to know her place around here."

Brows furrowing, Tamaki watched as a sarcastic grin came onto his fathers face. He stared, transfixed on the man before him, who was now seeming to crawl under his skin, his words feeding the growing emotional flame, burning deep inside of him.

"Ha! if only I had stayed in Paris... Then, I wouldn't have had to worry over her sorry self for so many years. I wouldn't have had this company to fret over, or this school to take care of. And then, I most certainly wouldn't have had-"

"Mom."

His father stopped.

Tamaki sighed, his anger simmering away until it was nothing but a warm breeze. Sad, he felt a low, melancholic chill run down his back. "You wouldn't have had mom, dad. She would have died without grandmother's money. And then where would we be?"

To this, his father held no answer. Bewildered by him, he turned to look up at his son, his mouth set into a frown, and the orbs of his eyes wide and full of shame. He swallowed, quickly averting his gaze from reaching his son's eyes.

A long silence stretched out in the room.

It ended when the chairman not so subtlety reached up to cough into his hand. Clearing his throat, he swallowed again, now nervous as to what to say to his son. "So. About that trip you were proposing..."

Tamaki held up a hand, quickly quieting his father. "That's okay, never mind it." A depressed, dark expression had settled over his face; a look which seemed to deeply concern his father. "I think... I think grandmother has waited long enough for me, don't you? I'm going to go play her something on the piano now to relieve her aches. Please excuse me."

Taking one last glance at his father, Tamaki began making his way out the room. He _really _had to get to his piano. Besides the comforts of his friends, his piano was the only thing that could calm him in the most desperate situations, the ones where he felt the weakest, like these. Nearing the door, he felt his heart rip in two when he heard the sound of his father's voice call out from behind him.

"Wait a minute. Tamaki-"

But he continued on. He just _had _to get away...

He just had to get lost in the sound of his music.

* * *

On that same day, just a few minutes away, in the apartment of Ranka and his _darling_ daughter Haruhi, Ranka was just returning from an evening of work at the bar, his face made up in a complimenting shade of blush and eyeshadow. A lovely color of bright red lipstick adorned his lips. Laughing to his self as he pulled off his heels, the cross-dressing man threw them onto the floor, quickly making his way towards the kitchen. Sashaying out into the kitchen's threshold, the dress he wore clinging to his thin, feminine frame, he grinned. He was eager to see his Haruhi.

"Hello, my pretty little girl, your daddy's home!"

No response came.

"Aww." He was immediately disappointed by her.

Well... perhaps over the years he had placed too high an expectation on her. She _was_ growing up on him, after all. The Haruhi he knew now wasn't the same three-foot girl, who used to hug him at the waist, and lean up on the tips of her toes to place a kiss on his cheek whenever he came home; the little girl in the second grade, who'd drawn pictures of her and him, the image of their tiny apartment crafted behind them in bold red crayon. She really wasdifferent from back then.

He had an older, much less innocent version of her now. Still, she could be just as sweet and kind, as the tiny girl he once knew; her eyes seeming to understand much more than any other normal person her age would. So wise and independent in her now young adult body, he still felt the obvious need to protect her. She would _always _be a little girl in his eyes.

Yes. Even if she was too smart for her own good. And very naive. And also, incredibly blunt. She would always be his.

His attention was caught by the sudden sound of her voice.

"I wonder what that idiot's doing right now..." She muttered, letting out a long sigh.

Standing in front of the sink of her kitchen, her dark chocolate eyes bored as she stared blankly into the tanned wall before her, Haruhi's hands held onto a pan and an old dish rag. Silently, working her limbs at wearing away the tiny left over specks left behind by the supper she had just cooked for them to eat upon his return home, her expression became thoughtful, her head turning slightly to the side, as she continued to gaze dazedly out in front of her.

Ranka smiled. "Oh. Oh dear, Haruhi. Continue muttering to yourself, and people are going to think you're crazyyy~"

"AHH!" The brunette jumped, accidentally dropping both items into the floor. She cringed on contact at the sound of the pan meeting the ground, before spinning around to look at her father. "Oh, good! No burglar. Just you."

He sent her a look of shock. "Just me? Oh, how you wound me. No '_I love you_'s, or '_how was your day today_'? My, Haruhi, how you've become so insensitive lately."

Haruhi shook her head, letting out a laugh. "Now, you know that isn't true. Plus, you are the one who should apologize. You scared me half to death!" She bent down to pick up the pan, and sat it gingerly within the sink. "You should have called in earlier. You know how often your schedule at the bar changes."

Ranka playfully stuck out his tongue. "Uh-huh. Okay. As if you standing there this whole time thinking of that idiot boyfriend of yours didn't have any part in this, right?" He let out a laugh when Haruhi sent him a look.

"You know, he really is a stupid boy... But he _is_ beginning to grow on me, whether I like it or not. Just don't let him know that. I'll rue the day when he comes barging through that door all grins and smiles over the fact that I can finally stand to tolerate him. God forbid we ever invite him to dinner again..."

Voice trailing off, he remembered the before mentioned incident, shuddering at the thought. It had occurred during Tamaki's last visit to their home. That idiot had _really _wanted to help Haruhi in the kitchen. He'd practically begged her for the chance to offer his assistance. Something about 'being the man of the house'? So then, when she left, telling him to _only _watch the stove while she was gone, he'd somehow managed to ruin such an _easy _task as simply watching water boil, and their curtains had went up in flames!

Yeah. It wasn't a fun experience for anyone.

Especially for Tamaki. He'd gotten yelled at by not only both the Fujiokas -Ranka and Haruhi-, but also by Kyoya, who Tamaki quickly called after the incident. He'd been in a distressed state when he did so, a long stream of tears running from his eyes, and the third Ootori son simply held no patience for him and his stupidity at that moment, not when he was coming so close to obtaining his own dream of owning his father's company.

After a brief, but very harsh conversation from Kyoya's end, between them, Mommy had hung up on Daddy and the discussion was, at that point, officially over. And from then on, Daddy knew that he would just have to learn to deal with his own problems...

Now, Ranka blanched, his angled face turning white as he thought of his poor drapes. For a moment, he mourned them. They would surely be missed.

Shaking his thoughts away, the man smiled, walking towards his bedroom. "I'm going to go change for the night. Dressing up is no fun when you have no one to impress. See ya in a bit, baby girl."

Rolling her eyes at his back, Haruhi faintly smiled. She really did love her dad, eccentric as he was as a person. Truthfully, she saw a lot of similarities between him and Tamaki. Both were incredibly loud and _sliiiiiightly_ obnoxious. But they were both caring individuals. Plus, the two of them carried a certain kind of love for her -from her boyfriend, she still couldn't comprehend why, or even _how_-, but she couldn't have ever wanted it any other way...

Suddenly, Haruhi sighed, a content hum emitting from her throat. Raising a wet hand to her hair, she gently fingered at the tendrils which reached just below her ears. It was growing longer day by day, but Haruhi had decided that she had quite liked how short hair looked on her. It was feminine, but empowering. The only problem with it was that Tamaki had a thing for long hair, but she decided that she would just make a permanent decision on her hair style when the time came for it.

Ultimately, however, no matter which way Tamaki's opinion happened to sway, Haruhi only wanted the hair style which was the easiest to tame in the mornings.

Blinking, she turned her back, leaning boredly against the counter of her kitchen. Her mind suddenly drifted once again, away from her all of her cooking or her hair, and onto a man, her sweet, but incredibly annoying idiot of a boyfriend, Tamaki.

"I wonder what he's doing right now..." She found herself whispering again, her hands subconsciously moving towards the cell phone in her pocket. She stopped. "No. You are not a needy girlfriend. You will wait until he calls you."

A long silence followed. Mentally, Haruhi slapped herself in the face. "Aaaaand now I really _am_ talking to myself. Great. I'm going insane, and I haven't even entered law school yet. Swell."

"No, you're just an idiot in love. There's a big difference." She jumped.

Frowning, she turned to give her dad a mild glare. "Nice sarcasm you have there." Apparently she had learned a thing, or two about comebacks from the twins.

"Good. I always love it whenever I am complimented." As for her dad, well, he had been born with it.

Dressed now in a long, loose fitting mens grey t-shirt, her dad came towards her with a big smile on his face. Stopping next to her, blinking, he noticed the look she was sending him. He grinned, his lips now a dull shade of pink. "What is it, Haruhi?... U mad, bro?"

A gruff sound escaped her. Averting her eyes, snickering lightly, she made her way towards the table where a small bowl of rice sat next to a plate of steaming vegetables. Lowering herself down to her knees, she sighed. "I should have never let the twins introduce you to the internet. The internet isn't a safe place for old people."

Ryouji made his way towards the table. "It also isn't safe for uptight girls who find studying to be an enjoyable hobby."

"I am _not _uptight! Or... well... at least, not as much as I once was. And studying _is_ an enjoyable hobby, thank you very much, because it keeps my scholarship _and _it helps further your worth in life."

Eyes meeting hers, his expression became softer as he looked over at her. "Yeah, you're not... And it's all because of them, too."

"Huh?"

"Nothing." He grinned. "All I was thinking about, was how Kyoya hasn't informed me of anything much as of late. I wonder... What have those hooligans you call friends of yours, been doing to you for the past few weeks, huh? Nothing bad, I hope."

Haruhi laughed. "Oh, nothing. Same old, same old. Talk to a guest, get them tea, bring them snacks. Very normal for me, at least. And as for Kyoya, well, he has been _quite _busy as of late. It's with his dad's company. But we're all very proud of him."

At this he smiled, leaning in towards her.

From then on they ate, spending the rest of their evening talking to one another until they finally parted ways, and quietly retired to their bedrooms for the night.

* * *

"Are you ready, grand'mama?"

The sound of Tamaki's voice made her turn to glance over her shoulder. Sitting on a small, pale green couch with her back straight, and her hands grasped together in her lap, she sent him a wrinkled smile, her eyes seeming to brighten a little by the sight of him.

"Yes, I am." She answered, lifting a hand towards him. "I knew that listening to you play would be a far better medicine than those swallowable chemicals we have stocked up in the pantry."

Tamaki slowly walked towards her. Grasping her hand, he bent down to her height. "A wise choice you made. Music really can ease any pain that one might feel." Placing a light kiss to her hand, he lowered it back to her lap and stood up, making his way to the piano adjacent from where she sat.

Taking a seat on the piano's black bench, Tamaki looked behind him. "What would you like me to play for you today? Some Mozart? Bach? Or, is there a request from any new dramas, perhaps?"

She sighed, repositioning her arms to where her hands crossed over one another, her palms lightly holding onto her elbows. "Anything you want to play is fine with me. We'll make today your day."

He smiled. "My, how generous you're being." Then, hovering his hands over the piano's keys, a thoughtful expression came to him. What would he play? What could make him feel any better when now he felt at his lowest?

With his grandmother's gaze on him, suddenly a thought struck him. Placing his hands on the keys, he began to play a slow, soft melody, the notes ringing out into the room in a quite mantra.

_Da dun dun. Da dun dun. Da dun dun. Da dun dun._

He began humming along with it.

"Would it be alright if I sung?"

His grandmother nodded. It was a moment before she answered. " If you must."

His whole being softened. "Thank you."

With that said, he continued the melody.

_Da dun dun. Da dun dun. Da dun dun. Da dun dun._

"_Dancing bears. Painted wings. Things I almost remember.  
And a song someone sings, once upon a December..._"

_Da dun dun. Da dun dun. Da dun dun. Da dun dun._

He thought of his mother.

"_Someone holds me safe and warm. Horses prance through a silver storm.  
Figures dancing gracefully across my memories..._"

His mind exploded with memories as he remembered all of the moments they had spent together, all of them with him doing the exact same thing that he was doing right then by her bedside. Oh, how she would smile at him through her pain; how she fought to continue on living for him. The sorrowful tears in her eyes when he had to leave their home for Japan.

"_Sooooomeone holds me safe and warm. Horses prance through a silver storm.  
Figures dancing gracefully across my memorieeeeees..._"

"_Faaaar away. Loooong ago. Growing dim as an ember.  
Things my heart used to know, things it yearns to remem-em-em-ber..._"

His voice trailed off into a faint whisper, a sudden silence striking the room.

Tamaki swallowed, thinking of the day he and Haruhi had chased his mother down in the airport. Three years it had been since he'd last seen her before then. But in the end everything was perfect, and he had Haruhi who'd helped him through it all...

"_And a song someone siiiiings..._"

Beside him, his grandmother raised a hand to the sleeve of her kimono and squeezed, her eyes hardening as she moved her gaze away from him, trying her hardest not to cry, or let him see the regret showing in her eyes.

"_Once upon a Decem-em-ber..._"

His long, practiced fingers hitting the final note, Tamaki closed his eyes, allowing the hallow sound of it to quickly rush over him like a ghost, its tone seeping deep down into him, and coursing through his veins, all before going straight up to his brain in a single instance and relieving most of his stress. Smiling softly, a long sigh of pleasure escaped him, and his heart seemed to lift just the tiniest bit, a happy feeling settling over him.

In the silence of the moment Tamaki glanced over towards his grandmother with a small smile on his face. So many things he wanted to say to her. He wanted to speak with her; to really _talk _to her. He wanted to ask her why she and his father just couldn't get along, and he still wondered whether or not she continued to harbor ill feelings towards his father because of his affair with Anne-Sophie, his sickly mother. That if all of the tensions between he and his grandmother had been broken, then why couldn't she and his father find some way to mend their bonds?...

A mother and her child should never hate one another.

Without saying anything more, he began to play another song for her. This time he sang nothing, instead allowing himself to become immersed within his own thoughts.

* * *

Ranka yawned, his eyes beginning to tire. Repositioning his legs on the ground, he leaned with his hands poised behind him, holding him up, as he gazed lazily at Haruhi. "Well, this has certainly been a wonderful evening. But I'm so old, and as much as it pains me to say so, I think it's about time that I go and retire to my mattress."

Across from him, her arms locked across her knees, Haruhi nodded, gazing back at him with an equally tired pair of eyes. Reaching up to wipe at them, she tried to get the sleep that was forming in the edges, out of them. When that didn't work, she tried blinking, hoping that doing so would improve her situation.

Sighing, discovering that her attempts were to all be in vain, she watched as her dad moved to push himself up from the floor. "G'night, Haruhi. See ya in the morning."

She smiled. "Goodnight, Dad. Sleep well."

Ranka waved half-heartedly behind him as he trudged across the room, his form appearing weary from the long day he had just had. Entering his bedroom, Haruhi listened to him sigh, before hearing the loud thud of his body as he practically threw himself into the soft, comfort of his mattress.

A laugh escaped her.

Letting in a breath, she allowed her eyes trail around her, and quietly took in everything that was around her. The apartment was very bright now, but it was so alone, with no one but her in the room. And the silence around her was almost deafening.

But tired as she was, Haruhi still did not feel like going to bed. Lying down on her back, she placed a arm beneath her head, staring up into the ceiling in silence. She sighed.

Suddenly, her phone began to ring from within her pocket. Reaching for it, she answered the call. "Hello?"

"Haruhi?"

She stilled. Something was wrong. Leaning up, she asked. "Tamaki?"

It was a second before he finally replied, his voice sounding melancholic. "Oh, hi. Um... how are you feeling tonight?"

Haruhi frowned. "Tired. I was about to go to bed, but I could stay up for a while and talk to you if you want me to... Um... so, how are you feeling?"

A nervous chuckle came from his side of the line. "The same as you; tired. Um, I just... I just got through with playing for grandmother. She likes to listen to me play."

"Hmm... that's good. I'm glad that the two of you are getting along together..."

"Yeah..." His voice trailed off.

Haruhi swallowed. In a calm voice, she said. "Tamaki... A-Are you okay? Is there something wrong?"

As he answered her, she could practically hear the false optimism in his voice. "Nothing, nothing. I just wanted to, um... to hear the sound of your voice. I-I really do love it."

"Oh..." An awkward embarrassment settled over her. "Well, t-thank you, I guess. I love... talking to you, too."

Pushing past her embarrassment, Haruhi could still tell that something was wrong with him. "Are you sure that you're fine? Nothing's wrong with you."

From his bedroom, Tamaki smiled. He was also beginning to grow tired, as he laid in his bed, his long, pj clad body taking up the length of the entire mattress. Cradling the phone to his ear, he felt the sadness within him practically melt away once he heard her voice, his soul seeming to practically drink in her presence.

"Yeah, I'm sure..."

Still, Haruhi did not believe him. Deciding that she wouldn't push it, she listened to the silence from his side of the line, it almost sounding as if he were pondering over something. Just as she opened her mouth to say something, she heard him speak.

"I...I love you."

His voice was caring, while a bit unsure, and her heart skipped a beat at his words. Raising a hand to her chest, Haruhi let out a quiet breath, a faint, yet loving grin appearing on her face. It was completely out of character for her to so easily become excited over something like that, but whenever it came to Tamaki, well... she almost couldn't help it.

"Haruhi?"

"OH!" She jumped. Why hadn't she already replied?! "I-I do, too. V-Very much." She mentally berated herself for sounding like such an idiot.

"O-Oh. T-That's good, then. Heh." Apparently she wasn't the only one.

"Y-Yeah. L-Love you."

"L-Love you."

The both of them were chuckling nervously, just like the two idiots they actually were.

Haruhi cleared her throat. "So... um, w-what are you doing now?"

"Just... lying around. You?"

"The exact same... I'm surprised that the twins aren't spamming me with text messages right now."

"Now that you mention it..." Tamaki suddenly stared quizzically down at his phone. He was surprised by who it was. "My dad just sent me a text message. Could you give me a short second to check it out?"

"Yeah, okay." Haruhi shrugged her shoulders, glancing around again as she waited for her boyfriend to read his father's message. A minute later, hearing the sound of his breathing once more, her attention finally returned back to her phone. "So, what did he have to say?"

"OH MY GOD!" His voice rung so loudly in her ears, Haruhi almost died.

"WHAT IS IT? WHAT'S WRONG?"

"WHAT'S WRONG? I'M SO EXCITED, I CAN'T EVEN SAY WHY I'M SO EXCITED!"

She groaned.

"Goodnight, Tamaki."

"Wait, wait! Haruhi-"

Immediately hanging up on him, she sighed, once again surrounded by silence.

For the first time that evening, she really felt like going to bed. So tired, she groaned, now thoroughly annoyed at her boyfriend.

Man, he made her exhausted.

* * *

**Please review! If you have any ideas on what you'd like to see happen, just let me know :)**

***The song that Tamaki sang is called 'Once Upon a December', a beautiful song from the movie 'Anastasia'.  
**


	2. Chapter 2

**Nothing really to say, except that Ouran doesn't belong to me!**

* * *

"I-I just..."

She felt completely alone.

"I just don't know what to do anymore..."

**Wait.**

She had to rephrase that:

She felt horrible, useless, dejected, and absolutely_, _completely alone.

Late that same night, Renge sat at her computer, staring up at the image of the man in front of her; her golden, honey brown eyes shining from the tears just beginning to form within their round, glossy orbs.

With an expression of immense sadness, her heart seeming as if it were in the midst of breaking into a tiny million pieces, she reached up to place a shaky hand over the image's heart, her head turning to the right, as she quietly willed him to listen with her gaze.

"Am I that annoying to you?"

Speaking to the image, a striking silence suddenly filling the immense emptiness of the dark space surrounding her, she was once again reminded as to why she was on her own, pretending to have a conversation with this handsome man. Because he simply didn't wish to have one with her. She loved him, and yet he simply refused to so much as acknowledge her, let alone even take a single glance in her direction.

Just a smile would quell her yearnings, a shared look between their eyes. That was all she asked for.

Still, he refused her. Not that she could truly blame him, though.

Lifting a hand to place a finger over the picture of his dark, short and silky looking hair, a deep longing filled her eyes. Bringing the digit down as if she were lightly caressing his hair, she let out a thin whimper, her voice cracking, as she stared into the man's blank gaze, her voice continuing to earnestly question him. "Why do you hate me?"

Her words, soft and laced perfectly with her sadness, resonated around the room, the stillness of it all quite unsettling to her. "What will it take to make you love me?"

There was still no answer to her questions.

Sighing, the girl lent over her desk, moving to prop her elbow on the desk in front of her. Eyelids drooping, she laid her chin tenderly within her hand, resting it for a while, as she continued to feel sorry for herself. Depressed; that was her mood.

"Am I not good enough?" She asked herself, defeat suddenly causing her shoulders to slump inward. She then stilled, a miniscule gasp escaping her. "_No_. Will I _ever_ be good enough?"

To all of her questions, the only response she would ever receive was silence; a silence that was really beginning to piss her off!

"Why you-" Renge banged her fist into the desk, a loud sound being created, and growled beneath her breath. Seething for a moment, she ground her teeth in anger, her mind beginning to kick into overdrive. Why couldn't he see her the way that she saw him, huh? Was she not good enough for him? Was it her hair? Her eyes?

Was it her french, and pompous accent? Because she had been told countless times by various types of people that she had a very high, and annoyingly grating voice. But how was she to help that?! And what about her hyperactivity problem, huh? Would it have made her a better person if she was different, if she just didn't want to stay true to herself?!

... Sometimes, the poor girl couldn't help but wonder this.

That if she was different, then her life would have been better. But still, like she had always managed to do, she wondered. Wondered whether or not she would have had a lot of friends? Definitely more than she had currently. And what about a best friend? Half of her high-school career was already over with, and she had yet to find a single person she could be so close to...

But what plagued her the most was this.

Would someone have loved her?

That was her biggest question.

Just a miniscule part of the sea of outcasts, the outsiders which made up the entire student body of Ouran, Renge had been an otaku, a _big _one, and absolutely _no one _likes an otaku. This fact had been the same with all of the members of the various less popular school clubs, those such as the Black Magic Club, and the Chess Club. Hell, even the Music Club caught crap from people!

Everyone disliked them for what they did, even when what they did was what they loved to do most in the entire world. The things they did was what made them who they were, and it made them happy and glad to be apart of something bigger than just themselves. But there was always the ones who just couldn't see, or even begin to understand their feelings. And this, she thought, was very sad.

Renge closed her eyes for a brief moment, groaning tiredly into her palm. Still, not everyone at Ouran felt the way the outsiders felt, that's for sure.

This was what had brought on the bullying for her.

It was an occurrence which had begun when she was as a young girl in France, about age eight. She hadn't meant for them to hate her so much. But then, out of the blue, she suddenly discovered Anime, and the wonderful world of RPGs. And this was what had given her hope. The hope that she could leave everything behind for a new start, a second chance... not to mention, hopefully a new boyfriend.

Bags eagerly packed, she'd flown off in a plane from France to Japan, one-hundred percent determined to meet her one, true love: Kyoya Ootori!

Back then, a time that now seemed so far and long ago, she'd imagined a world where with him, her life could only become better.

...

Much to her chagrin, it did not.

He absolutely hated her! And no matter what she did, nor what she said to him, he would always give her the cold shoulder. Sometimes, the rare moments where he would finally reply, or look to her, Renge would become overjoyed, but most times he would just look away to resume writing in that stupid little notebook of his, or he would continue to type away at that infuriating little laptop of his! Karma's a bitch, and the fact that he _still _happened to look _so_ adorable with those offending items of his, well, it just didn't help her case at all!

So, here she was. Renge, all alone in her room at two in the morning, staring up into the screen of her computer's monitor, her eyes a hopelessly lost shade of dark gold.

With a tear rolling down her cheek, she looked to the photograph of Kyoya on her screen, like a beacon in her dreary world. It was enlarged, having took over a fraction of the screen in front of her. Showing off all of his delicate, yet strikingly cold features, she took in each and every one of them, her eyes silently studying it, as if he were an unknown experiment of hers.

For the millionth time that night, her heart seemed to stop. A powerful emotion sweeped over her, her chest seeming to tighten.

"_He really is a beautiful_", she heard herself whisper, almost as if she were in a trance, and perhaps she actually was. The sight of him never ceased to remind her of his beauty.

Sighing, she sniffled a bit at her nose. Staring past the image of Kyoya to see the image of herself within her computer screen, she took in her appearance. Her hair was completely disheveled. Her tears, a long trail going down both cheeks, were finally beginning to fade, their remains becoming two light sticky tracks which moved down, along the front-side her face.

Suddenly taken over, her heart once again filled to the brim in sadness.

Though he was the one person who continuously hurt her, Renge could honestly feel nothing but sorrow for him. He was so lonely.

Knowing that he was content with his self, alone and cold towards others, she felt kind of obligated to love him. If she didn't, then who would? Who?

He would have been better off without her if he hadn't of had such a hard shell snaked around his heart, but since he continued to do nothing for it, what could she ever _really_ do for him, except try her hardest for his acceptance.

Nothing.

Suddenly, feeling a small, fast shiver run up her spine, Renge jumped, her thoughts immediately clearing. Reacting as if she had been struck by lightening, she desperately reached for her mouse, clicking off the picture of Kyoya.

The screen in front of her went blank.

Blinking confusedly, her heart pounding wildly, she took a few long moments to regain her breath. Letting in a thick inhale -remembering not to forget to let it out-, she was slowly able to settle her heart, somehow knowing far, far away in the very back of her mind that the feeling she'd just felt was sure to continue to linger on in her thoughts... Just like an annoying fly buzzing around her head, subtly bothering her no matter what she did.

Renge shook her head. Trying hard to not think about him, she moved her cursor over the icon for internet explorer and turned on the internet. Clicking on the browser up near the very top, she put in the address for Google, boredly typing in the first word she thought of once the screen came alive in a blinding shade of white -love-, and tiredly scrolled down the page until she accidentally clicked on a link, her eyes unexpectedly happening upon a small, out of the way forum for women.

Gaze immediately zoning past the bright pink background of the webpage, and onto the big, bold burgundy letters blinking at the very top, Renge stopped to carefully read them aloud.

"_Devoted to Love._" A tan brow rose at that.

"What's that?" she asked, her thoughts accidentally escaping that big mouth of hers.

For some reason, the name of it intrigued her. It was almost as if it were calling her to venture further into its depths. _Oh, Renge! Look at me Renge!_ She could practically hear it in her ears.

Pursing her lips in curiosity, she scrolled down the page, and quickly read through the first few forum topics.

_- Bad In Bed._

_- Cheating, Lying, Scumbags._

_- All the Lonely Girls._

_- How To Keep a Man._

_- Loveless Love._

So far from the topics she had read, all Renge could gather was that this website was a place for all of the hopelessly unloved females in love with a hopeless man. It was a website where women spoke about their relationship troubles and received advice about them, while also giving advice to the other women in return. It seemed to work almost like a community of lonely, yet supportive friends. The very idea of this brought a tiny smile to her face.

"They're not the only ones who are in need of advice. I mean, what do you even _do_ when the man you like is a unresponsive jerk, who's more interested in money and power than building a happy, budding relationship with someone, huh? Nothing! Absolutely nothing! Not even a detective could figure that man out." The girl groaned in frustration, folding her arms, and lying her face into them, shielding her sight from the empty space around her.

"I just... I just wish that he would try. Maybe... Maybe there's something I could do to make him see that... to make him see..." Renge let out a shudder of a breath. She shook her head at herself, her forehead dully moving along her arm. "To make him finally see how much I really love him; as a man, and as the pain in the ass that he is."

Sighing at her misfortune and once again beginning to feel quite sorry for herself, Renge raised her gaze back to the screen in front of her, her eyes staring at it blankly. Could this website be a sign? A sign that she would never be with him? That she would never be loved by him?

Oh, how the thought of that simply hurt her heart!

If she were to be any more depressed, she might have possibly resorted herself to growing mushrooms in the corners of her room like Tamaki-sempai. But unlike him, and like _most_ people, Renge wasn't nearly as stupid, or as melodramatic as he was.

Well... there wasn't _that _much distance between their levels of dramatics...

Still, she digressed. Renge shook her head. Now, what did that have to do with anything? Surely she wasn't too dramatic to be with someone as calm, and mysterious as Kyoya... right? RIGHT?! I mean, a man as boring as him could _always _use a bit of abnormal fun, and craziness in his life, right?

...Even if that craziness _did _happen to come from a boisterous, and obnoxiously loud female otaku, who sometimes cosplayed for her own enjoyment... and then, quite weirdly, went right afterwards, searching for pictures of his exact double, look-alike from her favorite RPG in the whole wide world, 'Uki-Doki-Memorial'... Right?

RIGHT?!

Suddenly, a thought hit her.

"Oh my god. A-Am I a... creep?"

Renge had never thought about this before. Letting the lids of her eyes drop, the teen repeatedly bang her head on the top of her desk.

"Why. Are You. So. Stupid!" Her words came out choppy, them being said each time her forehead came down onto the desk. She continued with her loud, headache inducing thumps.

What was even she doing with her life?!

Was what she doing weird?

...Maybe even a bit stalker-ish?

If only he'd just look her way. Then, if he did, she wouldn't have had to sit in front of his picture for so long, her mind wondering on what it would be like to be in his company for an hour, just her and him. Hopefully boyfriend and girlfriend, sitting alone, together in an empty room with no one around, and then, finally, all of her fantasies would come true -even some the really perverted ones-. A heated blush appeared on her face.

"GAH! Stupid Renge! Stupid, stupid." She slapped a hand to her cheek. "Get a _hold_ of yourself! You are a powerful, and sexy woman! You can have anyone that you could possibly ever want. You are a warrior! _The_ _warrior_! You are the _man_."

There came a knock from the outside her room. After a moment of silence, the face of a butler appeared in her room, his eyes immediately landing on her dimly lit form. Worn, grey features twisting up into a worried expression, though very used to her outbursts, he sent her a timid glance. "Ms. Houshakuji, is something the matter? I heard your voice carrying down the hall. Are you alright in here? It _is _quite the hour to still be up..."

A nervous laugh escaped her. Suddenly conscious of what time it was, she felt embarrassed. "Oh, ho ho ho. I-I'm fine, just tired is all." She sent him a fake smile. "I was just about to go to bed right now... I-If you wouldn't mind..." Her voice sounded awkward, fading off as she fought the urge to run away and hide. She felt a twinge of panic when one of his brows rose in confusion. "T-Thank you, though."

Now doubting his intrusion and realizing his mistake, the butler dutifully nodded to her, his form bowing slightly at the waist. "Oh, then my apologies. Goodnight, Ms. Houshakuji."

"Night." Sending him a bright grin as he left, it vanished once her door was fully shut behind him. "Great."

Her forehead, once again slamming onto her desk, created a loud thump which resonated out all around her. A dull grunt escaped her, the beginnings of a lump forming on the very edge of her temple. "Just great."

* * *

That morning wasn't any better.

Haruhi sighed, annoyed at the looks she was receiving from the two boys standing in front of her. Her eyes moving up to stare at them, the girl blew out a bit of hot air, her breath stirring a bit of a reaction out of few stray hairs which were hanging limply by her eyes. "What? What is it?"

Both brothers blinked, glancing towards one another. Hikaru, the older of the two twins, casually lent his weight over her desk, his whole body stopping to lie right next to hers. "Oh, nothing, nothing." He grinned, his eyes shining mischievously through the strands of black hair hanging over his eyes. They were gold, and cat-like. "Just that... Well... You might want to look behind you."

A thin brow rising in confusion, Haruhi glanced behind her, jumping at the sight of seeing Renge lying face-first on her desk. Light hair sprawled out all around her, her head appeared almost like a big puddle of honey, strewn haphazardly across the desk.

Honestly, she looked as if she were road kill.

Haruhi blinked stupidly.

Seriously. If the brunette hadn't of known better, knowing just how _dramatic _her classmates were, she would have probably presumed her dead.

As if hearing her thoughts, her limp form groaned.

"I'm dead."

At a lost for words, Haruhi had no idea as of what to say. Beside her, Hikaru snickered, the feel of his laughter vibrating against her desk. "Um, Renge? Are you alright?"

"No." She spoke into the desk, her voice muffled by its suface. "Please kill me."

Haruhi blinked. Brows narrowing, she stared adjacent at her female semi-friend. It seemed that since discovering her true gender, after she had become fully used to Renge's wild nature and personality, Haruhi and her had finally managed to form an _almost _peaceful relationship with one another... Man, Tamaki would have been so proud. "Why would you say that? What happened?"

Suddenly appearing as if he cared, Kaoru forced his way into the conversation. "Yeah, surely it isn't that bad." Leaning forward, he too, placed his self atop Haruhi's desk. He threw an arm around Haruhi's neck. "You shouldn't let yourself get so hung up over it, Renge-chan."

Haruhi blanched, now feeling how little space she had left. "You know, it _is_ beginning to feel a bit crowded over here." She allowed her words to hang in the air, their meaning meant for the twins. Hearing them, both of the boys looked to her, then at their mirror, before scooting closer to childishly press their cheeks against her own.

"Aww, she's so cute." Both said, rubbing their faces into her cheeks. Between them, feeling like a sandwich, Haruhi let out a grumble beneath her breath. Annoyed, she knew that sooner or later, one day, she would get cheek burn from their abuse. And then, on that day, the two of them would _certainly _have hell to pay...

Across from them, Renge glanced up, her gaze dark, and depressed. Staring at them, two black bags hung wearily beneath a pair of dull brown orbs, and her face was pale, as white as a ghost, thin from the grief within her tender heart.

The twins flinched; Haruhi's own eyes widened in surprise.

"Renge!" Surprised, she cried. Her mouth gaped open in horror. "What happened to you?"

"I really don't know..."

Gazing lazily, her eyelids drooping, the light-haired girl sent a tired, rueful grin in their direction. It was a moment before she responded. "Well... Kyoya happened to me... I was up all night again, thinking about him."

Haruhi frowned. "But why would you do that? He certainly isn't worth spending your time thinking about-"

Renge groaned tiredly. "Yeah, yeah. And I could say the same thing about your boyfriend. ANYWAYS..." She cried, pausing to lay her head in her arms. A sad, lonely sigh escaped her. Voice turning soft, she continued on with her words.

"I-I just can't help it. A year ago, I remember what it was that you said to me about waiting to find your true love. And then I finally understood it all. That you should fall in love with a person little-by-little, and learn to accept their faults as a person... Right? Even I agreed, and I still believe that. But... after watching him for the past year, and then knowing all that he's done in order to make his aspirations a reality... Well..."

She turned her head to the side, a look of embarrassment crossing her features as she stuck out her lips in annoyance. A light tint of pink came onto her paled cheeks. "I think... I think it really _has_ made me fall in love with him..."

"Renge..." Transfixed, Haruhi gazed down on her friend. A bit of sadness entered her heart, her ears fully listening to her words, and her heart suddenly understood just how _real_ the emotions in her voice were. How much truth they seemed to hold within them. "I... I don't know what to say."

This wasn't the same Renge from only a year ago. This Renge had matured since then.

Embarrassed, Renge forced a small smile. "You don't have to say anything. Just, please... be there for me. O'kay?"

Once again, Haruhi was speechless. She nodded wordlessly, quietly glancing over at the boys beside her. She noticed that the two of them were staring towards Renge, an intense gaze in each of their eyes.

"Don't worry, we'll be there!" Kaoru said, sending her a grin. The two of them had seemed to create a sort of friendship with her over the last few months as well.

Hikaru mimicked his brother's smile, reaching down to lightly pat at Renge's head as if she was an animal. "Yeah, we've got nowhere else to be. Why not hang out with a loud otaku, eh?" He then turned back to Haruhi, reaching down to also pat at her hair. "And Kaoru, let's not forget about our little Tanuki either. She's important, too."

Reaching his arms around her head, Hikaru gave her a small hug. Beside him, his brother also threw his own arms dutifully around her waist.

Kaoru nodded, smiling down at Haruhi. "Yep. Even if she _is_ a raccoon."

Grimacing, glancing between them, Haruhi let out a sigh. After a moment, a fond expression entered her eyes.

She really was proud of them both. Slowly, since having first met them, the twins had been gradually escaping from their once, so tightly knit lives, and were beginning to enter a world not too far separate from their own. They were smiling; and they were gaining friends outside of the Host Club. But they would still, no matter what, be her closest friends in the entire world...

Then, suddenly feeling the twinge of a smile which had come to her face, Haruhi immediately wiped it off, forcing a loud groan out of her throat. Throwing up her hands, she put them up to the twins' faces, trying to push them away. "G-Get off me!"

"No! It's hug time! Hug, hug!" They laughed as she attempted to get them off of her, all of her attempts seeming to be in vain. Arms flying everywhere, their struggles against one another continued until they heard the sound of Renge's high pitched giggling coming from their side, the twins slowly grinding to a halt, and Haruhi successfully being able to knock them off of her person. Looking over at her, a little breathless from her and the boys' tussle, she tried to regain her breath. Renge continued to laugh.

After a few seconds of laughing, Renge let her amusement slowly bubble away, it fading back into the past. Catching her breath, the girl grinned, the lightest bit of that old, fangirl twinkle suddenly appearing proudly in her eyes. "You know guys, a long time ago, I would have shouted 'MOE', if I happened to see you three doing that together. Now all I can say, is that I find it incredibly sweet. It's so kawaii how you three are such great friends. You have such a great dynamic now..." She nodded.

Momentarily side tracked from her never-ending depressed Kyoya-filled thoughts, Renge smiled proudly, a bit of her own brand of fondness hidden in her eyes. "Better characters than you used to have when I first met you. You've done well."

The three of them stared over at her, a stupid expression on all of their faces. Kaoru was the first to be pulled from his stupor. "Wow, Renge. That was... one of the most sensible/otaku things that I have ever heard you say before... I think."

Her mood immediately changed. Brightening immensely, her eyes lit up, an ecstatic grin stretching across her face. "Really, you think so?" She cried, her face practically glowing. Her tone became suddenly cool, and she glanced cheekily down at her nails. "Yeah, it's something that I have been trying for Kyoya. Being calm, and all of that junk. How did it sound?"

The trio sweat dropped. Hikaru didn't know how to respond. "I don't know. Good?"

She let out a triumphant yell, pumping her fist into the air above her. "Yes! Exactly what I was going for!" Her voice was so high it was almost squeaky. Renge continued to congratulate herself aloud. "I knew I could do it! Now, all there is left to do is test it on Kyoya, and then, have him fall hopelessly in love with me! Oh, ho ho! I'm so happy right now, I could eat three bowls of rice!"

Haruhi sighed. Dropping her gaze, she let a tired expression cross her features. "Yeah... Good luck with that Renge."

The girl nodded happily towards her, her mind now far away, off in her very own dream land; one that was most likely filled to the brim with sparkles, rice, and handsome, be-speckled assholes.

"Well, this isn't fun."

"Might as well sit down."

Sad that Renge's attention had been diverted from them, and knowing that class was sure to be starting soon, the twins took their seats by Haruhi's sides, each of them then eying her with a pair of gold, mischievous eyes. They just couldn't wait until club hours started.

Immediately noticing the looks being sent her way, Haruhi cast a suspicious look between them, her lips pursed together in confusion. Slowly, she coolly asked, "What are you two thinking about?"

They grinned. "Nothing."

She stared, her eyes managing to make contact with Hikaru's. After a long moment of silent staring, the boy's form shifted under her gaze, his eyes suddenly moving to stare at the skin just beside her eyes. He was lying.

Not that she could really do anything about it, though.

Then, Haruhi relented. "Well, okay..." She sighed, knowing that it was simply no use to question them. "Just know that I know you're lying."

"Okay!" The boys chirped, turning to grin at one another. From across her desk, they both reached over her lap to give the other a quick high five, before happily dropping back into their desks, their butts landing just as the class's sensei walked in through the door. Attention on him now, all of the students watched as he purposefully stepped into the room, a strained expression on his face, as his arms carefully held onto a tall, daunting stack of pale pink and yellow forms.

Before he could say anything at all, even a simple greeting to them, the school's loudspeaker went off, silencing everyone.

"Gooood morning students!" Hearing the cheerful voice of their chairman, each and every student's head moved quizzically up towards the ceiling, even Haruhi, who could somehow sense the falseness hidden deep within his tone. She had only talked to the man a few times since coming close to Tamaki, but she could still tell the difference in his voice. It was a trait that she'd always had around people. From when a person was actually happy, to when they were hiding, using a false cheerfulness, she could still tell the difference between them, and as far as she was concerned, this guy was faking everything.

"This is your chairman speaking. I hope that all of you are having a fun time amongst your fellow classmates. Today is sure to be a wonderful, and glorious day, and I hope that all of you are enjoying it to the fullest. Now, before I go any further, I have a special announcement for every single one of you! A surprise, if you will."

The twins' ears perked at this. Eyes widening, they looked to each other in a gleeful surprise. Between them, Haruhi's brow quirked, her dark eyes staring lazily above her, still a bit confused as to what the surprise could possibly be.

Around her, all of the students listened, now suddenly intrigued by his words. Glancing around, the silence so still as everyone waited, you would have thought all of them had forgotten how to even breath.

"ACHOO!"

Everyone in the room jumped. They all eyed the person who had sneezed.

It was Renge.

"Gomen", she whispered, her cheeks a dull pink. She held a small hanky up to her nose.

Everyone turned away, but Haruhi glanced concernedly back over her shoulder. She wondered whether or not that sneeze had anything to do with Renge's long night of worrying over Kyoya. Maybe. Probably not. She had no idea.

Throwing the thought to the back of her mind, Haruhi listened once the chairman continued his announcement.

"It has come to my attention that there has been quite the large gap in years, since Ouran has last taken a field trip of some kind, and this is _certainly_ not fair to you all. And because of this, it seems that many of the students here have become slightly restless from the normal school day, especially your more energetic classmates." A chuckle followed his statement.

Haruhi eyed the twins in annoyance.

"Anyways, I thought that now would be the most appropriate time to finally take all of my students on a little... vacation. Heh. So... how does Paris sound?"

An audible, ear-busting cheer erupted across the entire school, Haruhi's quiet form being swept carelessly along with it. Beside her, the twins were excitedly talking to one another, clearly unaware of the troubled look that had settled on her face.

Haruhi wasn't excited.

She didn't like the idea at all!

Frowning, she looked behind her to find Renge, her eyes shining and a big grin on her face, as she thought about finally returning home. It had been a long time since she had last seen her father's smiling face...

A sour feeling entered Haruhi's gut. Sure, she could understand how all of the other students felt about the trip, their happy expressions seeming to make her mood feel even worse as they all continued to celebrate without her.

But they weren't the ones in her situation.

How the hell could she even _afford_ it?!

* * *

**Hey guys! Please remember to review if you like the story! **

**~Lovebug  
**


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